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CQ«*^mu, ; i8t3) 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 048 337 8 



Hollinger 

pH 8 5 

Mill Run F03-2193 



) 197 REPORT 

863 
Dpy 1 




OF THE 






HOI. I. M MORRIS, 



ON THF, 



TWO PER CENT. FUND, 



ARISING FROM THE NET PROCEEDS OF THE SALES OF PUBLIC LANDS, 
SOLD IN THE STATE SINCE JANUARY 1st, 1819, AND DUE FROM 



THE UNITED STATES 



TO THE 



STATE OF ILLINOIS, 



MADE TO HIS EXCELLENCY RICHARD YATES. 



QUINCY: 

PRINTED AT THE QUINCY HERALD BOOK AND JO?, OFflOK, 

1863. 



0^ v 



^ 



\* 



TO EDITORS. 

Will each editor in the State, who may refer to the claim presented in this 
report, be kind enough to send me a paper containing the article, as I can use 
it beneficially. 

I. N. MORRIS, 
Quincy, Ills. 



*5 



To His Excellency Richard Yates, Gov I 
ernor of the State of Illinois. 
Sir, — I beg leave most respectfully j 
to submit to you a partial report in j 
the matter of the two per cent, fund 
arising from the net proceeds of the 
sales of public lands made within the 
State since January 1st, 1819. In 
making this report 1 can not, in view 
of the public interest or justice to 
myself, embrace in it all that it might 
be important and valuable to commu- 
nicate. Hence I shall do but little more 
now than compile the record as far as 
it is made up, and acid such observa- 
tions as will be necessary to explain 
its different parts. On some future 
occasion I may transcend these limits. 
Soon after my election to the 35th 
Congress, I entered upon an investiga- 
tion of the claim of Illinois against the 
United States, for the two per cent. 
%n the public lands sold in the State, 
and set apart in her enabling act "to 
be disbursed under the direction of 
Congress, in making roads leading to 
the State." The result of that inves- 
tigation was to satisfy me that the 
amount was due the State, and that 
existing legislation required its pay- 
ment. Consequently in a day or two 
after mv arrival in Washington in 
December, 1857, I opened a correspon- 
dence upon the subject with the Hon. 
Thomas A. Hendricks, then commis- 
sioner of the General Land Office, 
which is hereto subjoined : 



Washington City, } 
Dec. 12th, 1857.]" 
Hon. Thomas A. Hendricks, Commis- 
sioner of the General Land Office : 
Sir, — Will you have the goodness 
to communicate to me, at your earliest 
convenience, the gross amount of two 
fifths of the live per cent, of the net 
proceeds of the public lands sold in 
the State of Illinois, to which said State 
is entitled for road purposes, under and 
by virtue of the third proposition con- 
tained in the sixth section of "An act 
to enable the people of the Illinois 
territory to form a Constitution and 
State Government, and for the admis- 
sion of such State into the Union on 
an equal footing with the original 
States, approved April 18th, 1818." 
Yours very respectfully. 

I. N. MORRIS. 
General Land Office, \ 
December 17th, 1857. ) 
Hon. 1. JV\ Morris, House of Represen- 
tatives : 

Sir, — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your communication 
of the 12th inst., in reference to the 
three per cent, accruing to the State 
of Illinois under the provisions of the 
Act of Congress, approved April 18th, 
1818, and in reply have to state that 
the amount ior the year 1856 was 
adjusted on the 27th July last, and 
forwarded to the first Comptroller of 
the Treasury for his decision thereon. 
The balance found to be due the State 
on the 31st of December, 1856, under 
the provisions of the said Act amounted 
to $13,791,69. 

I am sir, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 
THOS. A.HENDRICKS, 

Commissioner. 



REPORT ON THE 



Washington, H. R., | 
Dec. 19th, 1857. | 
Hon. Thos. A. Hendricks, Commissioner 

of the General Land Office : 

Sir. ; — I have the honor to be in 
receipt of your reply of the 17th to 
my letter of the 12th instant, and 
allow me to say that you either greatly 
misapprehended my communication, or 
I made a great mistake in writing it. I 
think if you will refer to it again, you 
will find the error is with you. I did 
not inquire for the amount of the three 
per cent, accruing to the State of Illi- 
nois under the provisions of the act 
for her admission into the Union, but 
desired to know the gross amount of 
the two per cent, to which said State 
is entitled for road purposes by virtue 
of said act. 

Your early answer to that interrog- 
atory will greatly oblige me. 

I have the honor to remain, sir, 
Yours very respectfully, 
I, N. MORRIS. 

General Land Office, \ 
December 23, 1857. J 
Hon. I. JY. Morris, House of Represen- 
tatives : 

Sir, — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your communication 
of the 19th inst. in reference to the 
two per cent, to which the State of 
Illinois is entitled under the act of 
1818. 

In reply, I have to state that the 
amount will be adjusted at as early 
a day as practicable, and the informa- 
tion you desire will be transmitted 
to you. 

I am sir, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant. 
THOS. A. HENDRICKS, 

Commissioner. 

Washington City, ) 

Jan. 7th, 1858. ) 

Hon. Thoi. .J. Hendricks, Commissioner 
of the General Land Office : 
Sir,— On the 12th and 19th of last 

month, 1 had the honor to address you, 



inquiring for the gross amount of the 
two per cent, arising from the sales of 
public lands within the State of Illinois, 
to which said State is entitled by 
virtue of the act for her admission into 
the Union. Not having received an 
answer communicating the desired 
information, owing, as I am told, to 
| the indisposition of the clerk whose 
! duty it is to furnish it, I have to ask 
of you whether you will be prepared 
on the proper application being made 
to pay over to said State the aggregate 
amount of said two per cent, when the 
same shall be ascertained, as required 
by "An act to settle certain accounts 
between the United States and the 
State of Mississippi and other States," 
approved March 3d, 1857, and the 
said act of admission. Your early 
answer will greatly oblige me. 
I remain, sir, 
Yours very respectfully, 
I.N.MORRIS. 

General Land Office, \ 
January 8th, 1858. ) 
Hon. I. JY. Morris, House of Represen- 
tatives : 

Sir, — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your letter of 
yesterday, in which you enquire 
whether the Government will be pre- 
pared to pay over to the State of Illi- 
nois the two per cent, fund, to which 
she will be entitled in virtue of the^ 
Act of April 18th, 1818, for her 
admission into the Union, when the 
same shall have been ascertained, as 
required by the Act of the 3d of March, 
1857, and the said Act of admission. 
In reply, I have to state that the 
amount you refer to shall be adjusted 
as soon as the great pressure ot busi- 
ness will admit of it, and I am not 
aware of any reason for withholding 
payment of the amount to which the 
State may be entitled when the same 
shall have been ascertained. 
I am, sir, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant. 
THOS. A. HENDRICKS, 

Commissioner. 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



Washington, ) 
Jan. 9th, 1858. [ 
J Ion. Tfios. A. Hendricks, Commissioner 
of the General Land Office : 
Sir, — I had the honor to receive, 
this morning, your letter of yesterday 
in reply to mine of a previous date. 
In alluding to my inquiry whether you 
will be ready, when the aggregate 
amount is ascertained, to pay to the 
State of Illinois the two per cent, to 
which she is entitled on the sales of 
public lands made within her limits, 
and to which I have, in previous 
communications, more particularly 
called your attention, you say, tk l 
am not aware of any reason for with- 
holding payment of the amount to 
which the State may be entitled when 
the same shall have been ascertained." 
As I design to transmit to the Gov- 
ernor of my State our correspondence 
for his consideration, I shall be happy 
to have all doubts as to your determi- 
nation removed. The language which 
I have above quoted from your letter, 
while I have no question in my mind 
of its purport, may be regarded by 
some as ambiguous, and with a view 
of removing any misapprehension as 
to its meaning, I will be exceeding] v 
obliged if you will state definitely 
whether the amount will be paid upon 
the same being fully adjusted. 
I remain, dear sir. 
Verv respectfully, 
I. N. MORRIS. 

General Land Office, j 
January 13th, 1858. ( 
Hon. I. JV. Morris. House of Represen- 
tatives : 

Sir. — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your communication 
of the 9th inst., in which you request 
that I will state more definitely than I 
did in my letter of the 8th inst. .whether 
the amount of the two per cent, fund 
to which the State of Illinois may be 
found to be entitled, will be paid on 
the account being fully adjusted. In 
reply I have to state that I cannot 
give any more positive assurance than 
is contained in the communication 



• referred to by you ; and for the reason 
| that it is only the province of this 
office to audit the account and report 
the balance which may be found to be 
' due to the State, to the First Comp- 
j troller of the Treasury, who is charged 
! by law with the revision of accounts as 
; . the controlling officer, and who will 
; have the sole direction in regard to 
| the payment. 

I am sir, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 
THOS.A. HENDRICKS, 
Commissioner. 

Upon the receipt of the letter of the 

! Land Commissioner to me of the 13th, 

i 

1 1 transmitted copies of the correspon- 
dence to Governor Bissell, as will 
appear from the following letter from 
me to him, and his reply : 

Washington City, 
Jan. 16th, 1858. 
His Excellency Wm. H. Bissell, Gover- 
nor of the State of Illinois : 

Sir, — I transmit herewith copies of 
communications between myself and 
the Commissioner of the General Land 
Office, which will explain themselves. 

You will observe that the corres- 
pondence closes for the present, with 
the Commissioner's letter to me of the 
13th inst. After its receipt, I called 
at the Land Office, and urged person- 
ally that the account of the State 
against the General Government for 
the two per cent, fund should be ad- 
justed as soon as possible, and was 
assured no time should be lost in stating 
it. I therefore concluded that no ben- 
efit could result to the State by a 
further correspondence, and hence ter- 
minated it. 

It will be perhaps six weeks before 
the account will be njade up. I shall 
keep an eye to the matter, and about 
the time, or just before its completion, 
will apprise you of it, so you can at 
once cause the proper demand to be 
made on the Treasury for the money. 
In the mean time, I hope to receive 



REPORT ON THE 



such suggestions and instructions from 
you as you may think proper to give. 
Col. Miller, State Treasurer, was 
here a few days ago, and I communica- 
ted my action in the premises to him, 
and was glad to find it met his appro- 
val, and trust it may yours. I wish 
you to talk with him on the subject. 
I remain yonrs truly, 
I. N. MORRIS. 

Springfield, III., ] 
Jan. 22d, 1858. f 



bers [of Congress from Illinois had 
fallen ont with that administration, 
the consequence of which was that as 
little was granted to them as pos- 
sible. While the foregoing consid- 
eration doubtless had its full weight 
I in preventing an act of justice to the 
| State, I subsequently learned j upon 
| high authority that Mr. Buchanan had 
issued private instructions to the dif- 
ferent departments not to pay any 
Dear Sir,— I am very much obliged j c i a i m or demand on the Government 
for a copy of the correspondence lately j wMch cmU be postponed or de feated r 
had between yourself and the Commis- 



sioner of the General Land Office. 

You have acted well, indeed, in 
bringing this matter to our attention, 
and your perseverance has already 
brought an apparently reluctant officer 
to the proper point. I have no sug- 
gestions to make, and only request that 
you will exercise your own judgment 



with the view of lessening the expen- 
ditures of his administration . 

The foregoing statements will ex- 
plain why the matter was not closed 
up in Mr. Buchanan's time. 

The laws upon which I based the 
claim of the State in my correspon- 
dence with Mr. Hendricks, and upon 



in regard to the proper time for re 

newing your efforts, and that you will j w y c h j st jji re j y are as follows : 

keep me apprised of the progress of | 

the matter. 



Yours very truly, 
WM. H. BISSELL. 

Hon. Isaac N. Morris. 

After admitting the legality of the 
claim of the State and agreeing to have 
the account made up for presentation 
to the Treasury, Mr. Hendricks de- 
clined further action in the matter, 
and never did explain to me the reason 
why. I supposed at the time, that in- 
asmuch as he was a member of Mr. 
Buchanan's administration, he refused 
to comply with his assurance to me 
that the accouut should be stated, for 
the reason that the Democratic mem- 



CHAPTER CXXXIX. 

An Act to settle certain accounts 
between the United States and the 
State of Alabama. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives of the United 
States of America, in Congress as- 
sembled, that the Commissioner of the 
General Land Office be, and he is 
hereby required, to state an account 
between the United States and the 
State of Alabama for the purpose of 
ascertaining what sum or sums of 
money are due to said State, heretofore 
unsettled, under the sixth section* of 
the act of March second, eighteen 
hundred and nineteen for the admis- 
sion of Alabama into the Union ; and 
that he be required to include in said 



* The following is the third condition of the 
sixth section of "An Act to enable the people of 
the Alabama territory to form a constitution and 
etate government, and for the admission of such 
stato into the Union on an equal looting Avith the 
original States, approved March 2d, LS1!>, and is 
the only portion of the (5th section of the act rela- 
ting to the five per cent on the public lands. 

"That five percent, of the not proceeds of the 
lands lying within the said territory, arid which 



shall be sold by Congress, from and after the first 
day of September, in the year one thousand eight 
hundred and nineteen, alter deducting all expenses 
incident to the same, shall be reserved for making 
public roads, canals, and improving the navigation 
of rivers, of which three-fifths shall be applied to 
those objects within the said State under the direc- 
tion of the legislature thereof, and two-fifths to th« 
making of a road or roads leadingto the said State. 
under the direction of Congress." 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



account the several reservations under 
the various treaties with the Chicka- 
saw, Choctaw, and Creek Indians 
within the limits of Alabama, and 
allow and pay to the said State five 
per centum thereon, as in case of other 
sales. 

Approved March 2d, 1855. 
CHAPTER CIY. 

An Act to settle certain accounts | 
between the U. S. and the State of i 
Mississippi* and other States. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assem- 
bled, that the Commissioner of the 
General Land Office be, and he is 
hereby required, to state an account be- 
tween the United States and the State 
of Mississippi, for the purpose of ascer- 
taining what sum, or sums of money 
are due to said State, heretofore un : 
settled on account of the public lands 
in said State, and upon the same prin- 
ciples of allowance and settlement as 
prescribed in the "Act to settle certain 
accounts between the United States 



also state an account between the U. 
S. and each of the other Statesf upon 
the same principles, and shall allow 
and pay to each State such amount as 
shall thus be found due, estimating all 
lands and permanent reservations at 
one dollar and twenty-five cents per 
acre. 
Approved March 3d, 18 57. 

After Mr. Buchanan's administra- 
tion had refused justice to Illinois, I 
introduced a bill into the House of 
Representatives to compel the payment 
of the amount due the State, not that 
I believed such legislation necessary 
except to remove the obstacle cre- 
ated by the refusal of reluctant offi- 
cers to do their duty. The bill passed 
the House in a modified form at the 
last session of the 36th Congress, 
and was sent to the Senate, where, 
on motion of Senator Fitch, it was 
referred to the Committee on the Ju- 
diciary, who never reported it back. 
I urged time and again upon Senators 

to get the 



and the State of Alabama," approved 

the second of March, eighteen hundred 

and fifty five ; and that he be required I Douglas and Trumbul 

to include in said account the several bm fe f ^ genate and { b 

reservations under the various treat- . * ' 

ies with the Chickasaw and Choctaw | xt was Bever done J for what reason 

Indians within the limits of Mississippi, ! it is not necessary to inquire. 

and allow and pay to the said State j Thus the matter stood at the time 

five per centum thereon, as in case of j f Mr. Lincoln's inauguration. At 

other sales estimating the lands at ^ iod j met Excellency in 

the value of one dollar and twenty five I TXT ,*V ■ ^.\ -, T . 

cents per acre. ! Washington City, and as I was going 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, out of Congress, and not expecting to 
That the said Commissioner shall be able to give any further attention 



* The 5th section of an act to enable the people 
of the western part of the Mississippi Territory to 
form a constitution and State Government, &c, 
approved March 1st, 1817, is as follows : 

"That five per cent, of the net proceeds of the 
lands lying within said territory, and which shall 
be sold by Congress from and after the first day of 
December next, after deducting all expenses inci- 
dent to the same, shall be reserved for making 
public roads and canals, of which three-fifths 
shall be applied to those objects within the said 
State, under the direction of the legislature thereof, 
and two-fifths to the making of a road or 
roads leading to the said State, under direction of 
Congress." 

t The act admitting Illinois into the Union, enti- 
tled "An net to enable the people of the Illinois 



territory to form a constitution and State govern- 
ment, and for the admission of such State into the 
Union on an equal footing with the original States," 
approved April 18th, 1818, says in section 6, con- 
dition third : 

"That five per cent, of the net proceeds of the 
lands lying within such State, and which shall be 
sold by Congress, from and after the first day of 
January, one thousand eight hundred and nineteen, 
after deducting all expenses incident to the same, 
shall be reserved for the purposes following, viz : 
two-fifths to be disbursed under the direction of 
Congress, in making roads leading to the State, the 
residue to be appropriated by the legislature of the 
State, for the encouragement of learning, of which 
one-sixth part shall be exclusively bestowed *■ 
a college or university." 



8 



REPORT ON THE 



to the subject, I communicated the 
facts to you, and suggested that you 
should appoint some one to look after 
the interest of the State, as she was 
certainly entitled to the money I claim- 
ed for her. You requested me to 
send you a copy of my correspondence 
with Mr. Hendricks, (the original of 
which is of course on record in the 
General Land Office, as it is of an 
official character,) and I promised to 
do so. Soon after my return home, 
however, I was taken sick, and for 
eighteen months was not able to attend 
to business. In the mean time the 
war broke out, and I thought that 
perhaps you would conclude that a 
demand for the money had as well be 
postponed until the excitement conse- 
quent upon that event had somewhat 
abated. I concluded also that I could 
make you understand the facts more 
satisfactorily at a personal interview 
than by writing. It could not be 
expected you would remember them 
sufficiently distinct to act upon them 
from our hasty interview at Washing- 
ton. I took the papers with me to 
Springfield two or three times during 
the latter part of the past year, but 
was never fortunate enough to find 
you at home. You were always absent 
on official business. 

At the commencement of the last 
session of the Legislature we met, and 
conferred upon the subject. I submit- 
ted to you my correspondence with Mr. 
Hendricks and called your attention 
to the laws upon which I based the 
claim of the State. I am gratified to 
be able to add that you manifested a 
prompt, earnest, sincere, and highly 
commendable zeal for the interest of 
the State, and at once determined to 
prosecute her demand . Without solic- 



itation on my part, you were generous 
enough to tender me an appointment 
as Agent on behalf of the State, under 
which I repaired to Washington, arri- 
ving there on Saturday evening, the 
7th of February, taking with me a 
letter from you to the President, ex- 
plaining the object of my mission, and 
inviting his co-operation. On Monday 
evening following, I called upon His 
Excellency, delivered your communi- 
cation, and conferred with him in re- 
gard to the nature and character 
of the State's claim. All that he ap- 
peared willing to do at the time was, 
and I think perhaps that was as far as 
he ought to have gone, to endorse upon 
the back of your letter the following 
words, which I laid before the Com- 
missioner of the General Land Office : 

"I shall be obliged if the Commis- 
sioner of the General Land Office will 
give Mr. Morris a full hearing on the 
business indicated within, and do what 
may be directed by the law in the case. 
Please give Mr. Morris an early hear- 
ing." A. LINCOLN. 

February 9th, 1863. 

On the same day I called upon the 
President I addressed the following 
communication to the Commissioner 
of the General Land Office : 

Washington City, [ 
Feb. 9th, 1863. j 
Hon. J. M. Edmunds, Commissioner of 

the General Land Office : 

Sir, — I am charged by His Excellen- 
cy Richard Yates, Governor of the 
State of Illinois, with the duty of pros- 
ecuting the claim of that State against 
the General Government for the two 
per cent, fund due her under existing 
laws of Congress for road purposes. 
I therefore have to respectfully in- 
quire if you will direct the account to 
be made up under "an act to settle 
certain accounts between the United 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



8 



States and the State of Mississippi and 
other States," approved March 3d, 
1857, and the enabling act preparatory 
to the admission of Illinois into the 
Union. Your early answer will great- 
ly oblige me. 

I have the honor to remain, 
Yours Yery respectfully, 
I. N. MORRIS. 

Besides the foregoing letter I fur- 
nished the Commissioner with a copy 
of the laws upon which I based the 
State's claim, and my interpretation of 
them. On the next morning I was 
informed by one of his clerks, who 
seemed to have charge of the business, 
that the Commissioner and himself 
gave the same construction to the laws 
that I did, but that Mr. Joseph Wil- 
son, Chief Clerk, whose ^opposition I 
had anticipated, differed withe them. 
Believing the Commissioner's views to 
be as I had been informed they were, 
I felt no great concern about the re- 
sult, and was therefore surprised to 
receive from him the subjoined letter : 

General Land Office, 
February 13th, 1863. 

Sir, — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your letter of the 
9th inst., in which you inform me that 
you are charged by His Excellency, 
Richard Yates, Governor of Illinois, 
with the duty of prosecuting the claim 
of that State against the General Gov- 
ernment for the two per cent, fund due 
her under existing laws of Congress, 
for road purposes, &c. 

In reply I have to inform you, that 
I have carefully examined the several 
acts of Congress to which you refer 
in the memorandum which accompa- 
nied your letter above referred to, and 
all other acts of Congress relating to 
that subject so far as Illinois is con- 
cerned, and I do not find that Congress 
has relinquished its control over two- 
fifths of the fund set apart for certain 
purposes by the third clause of the 



sixth section of the act of April 18th, 
1818, Yol. 3, page 430, and nowclaimed 
by Illinois. 

The acts to which you refer re- 
late to moneys received by the Gov- 
ernment for lands which had been re- 
j served for certain Indian tribes. 

The acts for the admission of the 
States of Alabama and Mississippi, and 
other acts of Congress in relation to 
this subject, are almost identical with 
the acts relating to Illinois, and it 
was necessary for those two States to 
have special legislation by Congress 
before they could control the two per 
cent, grant for roads, see act of Con- 
gress of September 4th, 1841, sections 
16 and IT, pages 457, 458, Vol. 5. 

For the reasons here stated, this 
office is not, in my opinion, authorized 
to adjust to the credit of the State of 
Illinois, the two per cent fund referred 
to, without further legislation by Con- 
gress on the subject. 

Very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 
J. M. EDMUNDS, 
Commissioner. 
Hon. I. N. Morris, Washington, D.C. 

Your Excellency will observe by 
reference to the letter of the Commis- 
sioner that all he says about the laws 
to which I directed his attention, is 
that "the acts to which you refer relate 
to moneys received by the Government 
for lands, which had been reserved for 
certain Indian tribes " — a very sum- 
mary way, indeed, of disposing of so 
important a matter. My understand- 
ing is that the Government "received" 
no money for the lands referred to by 
the Commissioner reserved for certain 
Indian tribes, but notwithstanding this 
paid to the States of Alabama and 
Mississippi the full five per cent, on 
those lands. It appears, therefore, 
that the Commissioner mistook the fact 
as well as the law. 

What, as he seems to suppose, two 



— ^"■^^^^^■^■■i 



10 



REPORT ON THE 



sections incorporated into the pre- 
emption act of 1841, relating to the 
live per cent, fund due Alabama and 
Mississippi, can have to do with the 
construction of the acts of 1855 and 
1857, making no reference to the 
special legislation referred to, is more 
than I can discern. The Commission- 
er seems to forget that the laws of 
1855 and 1857 were passed long subse- 
quent to the special legislation of 1841, 
and that the act of 1857 is a general 
act, intended for the benefit of all the 
States, and requires the five per cent, 
to be paid to £ach State. Is each 
State to be deprived of its rights under 
that act because some sixteen years 
before, Congress passed a special law 
for Alabama and Mississippi ? The 
Commissioner certainly can not doubt 
but that Mississippi, if she had not 
previously received her five per cent, 
could receive all or any part of it under 
the act of 1857, and if Mississippi, 
why not ''each of the other States ? ,J 
The law so provides, and covers the 
original sum and all arrears due Miss- 
issippi and other States. 

After the claim of the State had 
been decided adversely by the Com- 
missioner, I presented all the laws 
bearing upon the subject to the Presi- 
dent, and at his instance read them 
over three or four times that their 
import might be fully and accurately 
comprehended. Fortunately Judge 
Norton, a clear headed and able law- 
yer of Joliet, who is member elect to 
the 38th Congress, was present by 
accident. After a careful considera- 
tion of the question, the Presi- 
dent and Judge Norton gave it as 
their concurrent opinion that Illinois 
was legally entitled to the full five 
per cent, arising from the sales of 



public lands made within her limits 
since Jan. 1st, ] 819, under and by 
virtue of the act of 1857, for the set- 
tlement of the accounts of Mississippi 
and other States, and the provisions 
of the enabling act for our own State 
thus fully and entirely sustaining the 
legal view I had always taken of the 
claim. The President at the inter- 
view referred to, was exceedingly kind 
and courteous, and very ready and 
frank in expressing his opinion, and I 
am gratified to be able to add that he 
has expressed that same opinion to 
various other persons, and among them 

to yourself. He said to you a short 
time ago when you were in Washing- 
ton and when you requested he should 
listen to the reading of my communi- 
cation to the Interior Secretary under 
date of March 10th, 1863, that he 
would have no objection if his time 
would permit ; that he had, however, 
gone over the premises with me once 
— that the conclusion had been reached 
that the State was entitled, to the money. 
and it was not worth while to go over 
the premises again. I had two or 
three other interviews with him, to 
which it is not now necessary to refer 
in detail. What followed the one 
above indicated, the following letters 
will sufficiently show. I need not tell 
you how laborious is the task to ac- 
complish any business in a Department 
at Washington. 

In pressing with zeal and ardor the 
Secretary of the Interior for a formal 
decision of the appeal to him 
from the Land Commissioner, I did 
no more than I believed my duty to 
the State required. You will observe 
the somewhat singular fact that I was 
unable to get written replies to my 
communications except from the Com- 



TWO PEE 0Ejn» FUND. 



11 



inissioner of the General Land Office. 
I was therefore compelled to make mj 
calls and those of my friends sufficiently 
numerous upon Public Functiona- 
ries to make up a record myself, and I 
believe it will not be found the less 
incomplete or objectionable on that 
account. Bat to commence it : 



Washington City, D. C, 
February 18th, 1863. 



i\ 



Washington City, 
Feb. 20th, 1863. 
Hon. J. P. Usher: 

Sir, — It has occurred to me 
this morning that I would very briefly 
state, in writing, some of my views of 
the laws to which I referred last eve- 
ning, in presenting the claim of Illinois 
to the two per cent fund due her under 
various acts of Congress. I will, of 
course, only mention the points. 
The 6th Sec. of the enabling act of 



Edmunds Commissioner of ! Alabama set? a P art five P er centum 
Hon. J. M. JLamwnas commissioner oj , of the n0fc proceeds of tkfl publi(j knds 

the General Land Office. \ for cer t a i n purposes, three parts of 

Sir,— I respectfully appeal from which was left at the disposal of the 
your decision in the matter of the ap- legislature, and two parts to be ex- 



plication of the State of [llinois claim 
ing from the United States the two 
per cent, on the net proceeds of the 
public lands sold in said State since 
1819, and request that with the least 
possible delay you transmit the pa- 
pers in the case to the Secretary of 
the Interior for review. 

Respectfully, 
I. N. MORRIS, 

Agent for said State of Illinois. 
After the appeal was perfected and 
the case argued before the Interior 



pended under the direction of Con- 
gress . 

"An act to settle certain accounts 

between the United States and the 

State of Alabama," approved March 

2nd, 1855, requires the Commissioner 

of the General Land Office to state 

an account "between the United States 

I and the State of Alabama," for the pur- 

! pose of ascertaining "what sum or 

I sums of money are due to said State 

heretofore unsettled," under the said 

sixth section of the enabling act, and 

he is also required to ''include in said 

Secretary, I transmitted to that officer I account the several reservations under 



the following letter, showing briefly 
as I had shown more in extenso, ver- 
bally, that the subject of legislation was 
the five per cent, and its application 
the public lands sold in the states, in- 
cluding Indian reservations, &c; that 
it was the design of Congress to place 
all the new States in which there were 
public lands on an equal footing in 
regard to the five per cent, with Mis- 
sissippi, Alabama and other States 
which had received it, and that the 
law of 1857 does so place them. All 
the time between the 19th of February 
and the 27th of March when sickness 
compelled me to leave for home, I 



the various treaties with the Chicka- 
saw, Choctaw, and Creek Indians, and 
allow and pay to the said State five 
per centum thereon, as in case of other 
sales." 

The first thing required of the Com- 
missioner is that he shall state an ac- 
count between the United States and 
Alabama, under the sixth section of 
her enabling act, setting apart five 
per cent, of the net proceeds of the 
sales of public lands, which means all 
public lands sold in the State, and 
under which account the State could 
obtain the amount, if no other act 
relating thereto had ever passed. T he 
Indian reservations are only cumula- 
; tive and the five per cent, is also re- 
quired to be paid on those lands. 



The act "to settle certain accounts 
spent m earnest endeavors to get the j between the United States and the 
Interior Secretary to decide the appeal: j State of Mississippi and other States," 



12 



REPORT ON THE 



approved March 3d, 1857, requires 
the settlement to be made with Missis- 
sippi "on the same principles of allow- 
ance and settlement as prescribed" in 
the Alabama act, and directs the pay- 
ment of the five per cent, on the public 
lands" in said State, adding thereto 
the Indian reservations as in the case 
of Alabama. 

The second section of the act rela- 
ting to Mississippi, requires the Com- 
missioner to state an account between 
the United States "and each of the 
other States upon the same principles," 
that is, as is required by the act in 
regard to Alabama, "and shall allow 
and pay over to each State such amount 
as shall thus be found due." This 
section also provides that "all lands 
and permanent reservations," shall be 
valued at one dollar and twenty-five 
cents per acre. The title of the act 
itself, clearly shows it was designed to 
include all the States in which public 
lands had been or would be sold, and 
was intended to be, as it is, a general 
public act. Its language verifies this 
conclusion. 

The laws to which I have referred 
were passed by Congress long subse- 
quent to the acts relating to the Nation- 
al Road, and hence, if the States were 
ever deprived by previous legislation 
of any part of the two per cent, which 
I do not admit, it was reinvested in 
them by the laws upon which I base 
the claim of Illinois, together with the 
enabling act relating thereto. 

I have the honor, sir, to subscribe 
myself, Your obliged friend, 

I. N, MORRIS. 

March 23d I called at the Interior 
Department to learn the Secretary's 
conclusion, but he postponed the mat- 
ter, saying among other things that if 
he did decide the case and the money 
was paid, the Democratic members of 
Congress from Illinois would probably 
abuse the administration for it. I as- 
sured him to the contrary, and to put 
his apprehensions on that score at rest, 



and to show what their opinion was 
of the legal and equitable character of 
the State's claim, I procured the sig- 
natures of all the members of the last 
Congress, and Judge Norton, General 
Farnsworth and Col. Morrison's, mem- 
bers elect to the 38th Congress, to the 
letter given below, the original of 
which I filed in the Interior Secretary's 
office. 



Washington City, 
Feb. 23d, 1863. 

Hon. J. P. Usher, Secretary of the Int. 
Sir, — In the matter of the appeal 
before you, in which the State of Illi- 
nois claims two per cent, of the net 
proceeds of the sales of the public lands 
sold in that State since 1819, we 
have to say that we regard the State 
as legally and equitably entitled to it 
under existing laws, and trust you will 
not hesitate to direct the account to 
be made up, with a view to its pay- 
ment by the government. 

Although the sum may be large, 
that of course cannot constitute a valid 
objection to the claim or furnish a 
reason for withholding the amount 
justly due, nor do we mention it under 
the supposition that any such conside- 
ration will at all effect the decision of 
the appeal. 

Certainly no sound reason can be 
given why Illinois should not be placed 
on an equal footing with Louisiana, 
Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Mis- 
souri, Michigan, Wisconsin, Kansas, 
Iowa and Minnesota, in respect to the 
five per cent, set apart in their enabling 
acts for the objects specified therein. 
The laws requiring the liquidation 
of the claim, Congress alone is re- 
sponsible for, and no just censure can 
attach to the Administration for exe- 
cuting them : on the contrary its clear 
and undoubted duty is to give effect 
to their provisions. Blame might 
properly attach if it failed to doso. 

Again appealing to you to act in the 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



13 



premises we acknowledge ourselves, 
Yours very respectfully, 
A. L. KNAPP, 
J. C. ROBINSON, 
W. A. RICHARDSON, 
L. TRUMBULL, 
ISAAC N. ARNOLD, 
P. B. FOUKE, 
WM. J. ALLEN, 
E. B. WASHBURN, 
W. KELLOGG, 
0. LOVEJOY, 
JESSE 0. NORTON, 
* J. F. FARNSWORTH, 
WM. R. MORRISON. 

Still the foregoing brought no de- 
cision of the appeal, and led to the 
production of the following letters and 
divers personal applications, which 
were alike unavailing without any 
justifiable cause for the delay, as I am 
persuaded your Excellency will admit : 

Washington City, 
Feb. 27th, 1863. 
Hon. John P. Usher, Secretary of the 

Interior. 

Sir, — I acknowledge the kind and 
courteous manner with which you lis- 
tened to my presentation of the claim 
of Illinois to the two per cent fund 
arising from the sales of public lands 
within her limits. Since that time, 
now some ten days, I have called twice 
at your office to learn your conclusion. 
On the first occasion you spoke of the 
amount being large, and expressed ap- 
prehension that the payment of it would 
create excitement, and asked that I 
would not urge a decision then. Being 
satisfied that the determination, when 
officially expressed, would be in favor 
of my State, and not wishing to be too 
importunate I concluded that a few 
days delay would only be a matter of 
personal inconvenience to myself, and 
hence readily yielded to your desire. 

On the last occasion you still asked 
for further time, and expressed the 
fear that Mr. Chase, Secretary of the 



Treasury, might not be satisfied if such 
a sum as my State is entitled to was 
directed to be paid, and advised me 
to return home, leaving the question 
undisposed of. I answered I could 
not see what Mr. Chase had to do 
with the matter ; that he was not 
charged at all with the execution of 
the law, his duty being merely a com- 
pliance with the demand on him for 
the money, and that I could not think 
of leaving here until the subject was 
finally acted on. You will, I am per- 
suaded, on a moment's reflection, be 
convinced I was right in this. To go 
to Illinois and report 1 left the claim 
pending on an appeal before you would 
prove I was an unfaithful agent, and 
subject me, as it ought, to public dis- 
respect. Under no circumstances could 
I think of doing so or abandoning the 
trust reposed in me. 

To obey one law and fulfill one 
obligation is just as sacred a duty on 
the part of the Government as to obey 
another law and fulfill another obli- 
gation, for both are equally impera- 
tive, and leave an administration with- 
out any right or power of discrimi- 
nation. 

The mere question of the embarrass- 
ment of the Treasury cannot, and 
ought not, and I am convinced will not 
be plead as an excuse for the non-com- 
pliance with a plain statute. I do not 
desire nor does my State, to injure the 
National credit or embarrass the Gov- 
ernment finances, but when will there 
be a more propitious moment than the 
present for the payment of the amount 
due? Already the State has been 
deprived of it for years, and, of course, 
has lost the interest upon it. Since 
1857 I have been prosecuting the de- 
mand, and have orally explained to 
you why it has not heretofore been 
paid. Hence it is no new or sudden 
claim brought up at the present time 
from sinister motives. I trust there- 
fore you will direct the account to be 
made up as the law certainly requires 
of you. 

As our communications have here- 



14 



REPORT ON THE 



tofore been of a verbal character, 1 1 
think it best that hereafter they shall | 
be in writing, for, in that way, they 
will not only be more certain, but more 
satisfactory, This is especially impor- ; 
tant to me, and the Governor of my j 
State, to whom I will of course, make j 
a full and accurate report, embracing 
the entire correspondence and papers, 
of my action in the premises. 

-Awaiting your reply, and believing 
it will not be long delayed, and feel- 
ing the utmost confidence that dupli- 
cate legislation will not be demanded 
to compel the General Government to 
do justice to a sovereign and loyal 
State, 

I have the honor, dear sir, to sub- 
scribe myself your friend and obedient 
servant, I. H> MORRIS. 



Washington City, ) 
Monday, March 2nd, 1863. J 
Hon. John P. Usher, Secretary of the 
Interior. 

Sir,— My interview with you on Satur- 
day left a deep and unpleasant im- 
pression on my mind. For the first 
time, you suggested that the case rela- 
ting to the business of my State was 
not perhaps properly before you on an 
appeal from the Commissioner of the 
General Land Office, inasmuch as all 
the papers pertaining thereto had not 
been transmitted as you alleged. On 
subsequent examination I found you 
were mistaken in this, for I traced 
them to your own table. 

You also suggested for the first time 
that the case might have to go to a 
Clerk for his examination and revision, 
adding "perhaps he will be able to find 
something against it," 

On a previous occasion you advised 
me to obtain a mandamus, which, if I 
am correctly informed, cannot be sued 
out against a Government officer in this 
city ; still if it could be, what reason 
can be assigned why Illinois should be 
driven to the necessity of having the 
writ issued to force a decision she is 
otherwise justly entitled to. 



These facts, transpiring at the time 
and under the circumstances they did, 
would seem to convey the belief that 
while the law is in favor of my State, 
she is to be deprived of its benefit by 
dilatory pleas. If such should be the 
result, and a Clerk, who is not a law- 
yer or charged with any responsibility, 
is to review the application or claim 
after it has been argued and submitted 
to you for decision, I must be frank 
enough with you to say such a proce- 
dure would be totally unwarranted. 
Illinois asks only that sh A shall be 
treated with respect and awarded her 
just due. She is no eleemosynary beg- 
gar at the National Treasury, yet in 
her name and on her behalf 1 solemnly 
and earnestly protest against a con- 
struction and policy, if they should be 
finally adopted which I am yet unwil- 
ling to believe will be the case, relying 
as I do upon your great legal ability 
and high sense of justice, that would 
discriminate to her wrong and injury. 
Yours very respectfully, 
I. N. MORRIS. 

Washington, D. C, ) 
March 10th, 1863. J 

Hon. John P. Usher, Secretary of the 

Interior. 

Si R) — When I arrived in this city 
more than a month ago, I did not an- 
ticipate the delay to which I should be 
subjected and the exertions I would 
be compelled to make, to obtain for 
the State of Illinois the two per cent, 
fund arising from the net proceeds of 
the sales of public lands made within 
the limits of the State since January 
1st, 1819. The right of the State 
rests upon a few statutes that are so 
plain and emphatic in their provisions, 
and that have been so uniformly con- 
strued to have no ambiguous meaning 
by legal minds, that I confidently ex- 
pected a ready assent to the proposi- 
tion 1 presented. And especially was 
this the case when the President, after 
a careful examination of the laws bear- 
ing upon the subject, expressed the 
opinion to you, to Judge Norton, 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



15 



member of Congress elect from Illinois, 
and to myself, that the State is enti- 
tled to the benefit I claim the laws 
confer upon her. I am disappointed 
therefore, that these weeks of waiting, 
and repeated requests for official action 
have brought me no formal decision 
of the appeal now pending before you. 
And I am the more surprised at this 
procrastination in view of the fact 
that you have never given to me or to 
others so far as I can ascertain any 
intimation that you entertain a doubt 
as to the equity or legality of the claim 
I represent. On the contrary the re- 
marks you have made at our various 
interviews have given me the impres- 
sion that you are satisfied that the de- 
mand made by the State is a just one, 
and others who have been with me at 
some of those interviews, and who, at 
the time, suggested that if any doubt 
existed, it could be in a moment ex- 
pressed, have shared with me that im- 
pression. 

At first you stated that the amount 
involved is large, and that the payment 
of it might create some excitement. I 
answered that the amount in issue 
could not, properly, affect the decision 
of the case in any way, and that the 
real question is and was, what are you 
legally required to do, and not what 
may be the consequences of the dis- 
charge of your duty. 

At another time you advised me to 
sue out a writ of mandamus, but it 
appeared to me, aside from insuperable 
legal objections, that a writ of manda- 
mus could not, if granted, make more 
clear my right to ask from an appellate 
tribunal the decision of an appeal prop- 
erly taken. 

Subsequently you interposed other 
obstacles, and among them the sug- 
gestion that the President might feel 
some delicacy in having a decision 
made in favor of his own State, and 
that you also felt some hesitation in 
making a decision that might deter- 
mine the rights of the State of Indiana 
the place of your residence. To such 
excuses there can be but one reply. 
The duty of executive officers in con- 



struing and executing laws can not be 
affected in any way by extraneous cir- 
cumstances, or by the individual pecu- 
liarities in the relations of the officers 
and it would be strange, indeed, if a 
State could be deprived of the benefits 
of legislation, simply because it hap- 
pened that one of the citizens of the 
State was the executive officer charged 
with the execution of the law. — 
The character of the law affixes no 
responsibility to the officer, neither 
is there any discretion given to the 
Executive to suspend the solemn 
enactments of the Legislative Depart- 
ment. When an appeal is taken from 
a subordinate officer to a higher one, 
if the one to whom an appeal is taken 
arbitrarily refuse to consider the ap- 
peal, of what avail is the legislation 
providing for it? I do not charge 
that your delay had such intentional 
effect, but I do say that such is the 
practical result. 

Learning that you intended to take 
your departure for Indiana on Satur- 
day evening, the 7th inst., I made two 
special efforts to obtain a decision be- 
fore you left, but was unsuccessful. 
I even asked that in the event you 
were unwilling to decide, you would 
refer the case to your learned and able 
assistant, Judge Otto, or that you would 
make an agreed case and submit it to 
the Court of Claims. The^e requests 
you also declined. With deference I 
ask if such treatment is just and re- 
spectful to a sovereign State ? I 
make no complaint of the inconveni- 
ence I have personally suffered, al- 
though I came a distance of twelve or 
fifteen hundred miles to urge the rights 
of Illinois under an appointment from 
her governor, and remained here great- 
ly to the injury of my health. 

1 have presented the foregoing con- 
siderations without any unkind feel- 
ing, and only because the interests 
of my Sta'e eeemed to demand that I 
should not fail to express my dissatis- 
faction at your course. 

There is one other matter to which 
I wish to call your particular atten- 
tion. On Saturday last, the day you 



16 



REPORT ON THE 






left for Indiana, I called at your 
office and you informed me that "the 
claim of Illinois for the two per cent 
fund had long ago been disposed of at 
the Treasury Department, on my ap- 
plication." I replied that it must be 
a mistake, as no application I had made 
had ever reached that Department. 
You affirmed that it was so, and re- 
ferred me, for a confirmation of the 
statement to Judge Otto, the Assis- 
tant Secretary, saying that he had a 
paper or document to show it. I 
went immediately to Judge Otto's 
room and informed him what you had 
said. He at once replied that you 
were mistaken, as I knew you must be. 
Upon further inquiry I was informed 
that the paper or document you re- 
ferred to was the opinion of the Comp- 
troller of the Treasury, to the effect 
that Missouri was intitled to the two 
per cent fund on the lands sold in that 
State — a paper exhumed from the 
Treasury Department by a land 
office clerk, and transferred to your 
Department to furnish an insurmount- 
able obstacle in the way of the rights 
of Illinois. The subsequent examina- 
tion, I made on Monday, disclosed the 
fact that it was not in any sense an 
official paper; that it was no part of 
the Government archives, but was the 
private property of Col. Wm. H. 
Jones, for many years chief clerk in 
the office of the First Comptroller, 
and now the acting Comptroller ; a 
paper prepared by Col. Jones for his 
private information and satisfaction, 
in view of the fact that a difference 
had arisen between himself and Gov. 
Medill, (at that time the First Comp- 
troller,) who constantly urged that if 
Missouri obtained the five per cent 
the other States were legally equally 
entitled to it, as to the right of the 
State of Missouri; which question, that 
is the claim of Missouri, had been re- 
ferred to the /Utorney General for his 
opinion. Subsequently the private 
views expressed by Col. Jones in the 
said paper, were sustained and ap- 
proved by the Attorney General, as 
appears from a letter addressed to the 



Treasury Department by him, dated 
May 30th, 1860, and containing the 
following words : "I have examined 
the papers you sent me relative to the 
claim of Missouri for two per cent, on 
the sales of public lands and am clear 
that she is entitled to what she 
claims.' 7 . 

If this "document" had been an 
official paper it could not be used in- 
juriously to the State of Illinois. Her 
interests were in no way involved with 
those of Missouri, nor could a decision 
in regard to the rights of Missouri 
affect the rights of Illinois. How 
ever, as you deemed the paper of suf- 
ficent importance to have copied, I 
will refer to it briefly, in connection 
with what I have to say relative to 
the appropriations for the Cumber- 
land — commonly called the National 
Road. I do not regard the legisla- 
tion concerning this road important 
to the determination of the legal ques- 
tion of the right of Illinois, but I re- 
fer to it as a matter of contempora- 
neous history. 

The first appropriation made by 
Congress to the national road was 
one of $30,000, made by act of March 
29, 1806, and long prior to the era of 
railways. It was the intention of the 
National Legislature to establish a bet- 
ter and more direct communication 
between the National Capital and the 
Ohio river. Two per cent of the 
money arising from the sales of pub- 
lic lands in the State of Ohio was re- 
served to reimburse the Treasury. 
From 1806 to 1825 various appropria- 
tions were made to carry on the work. 
In the latter year Congress passed a 
law to extend the road to Zanesville, 
Ohio, and provided that the appropri- 
ations made for that object should be 
reserved out of the two per cent fund 
of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri. 
The same act provided that the Presi- 
dent should appoint commissioners to 
complete the examination and survey 
of the road to the permanent seat of 
Government in the State of Missouri, 
through the seats of Government of 
the States of Indiana and Illinois. 



TWO PEB CENT FUND. 



17 



From that time until 1839, about 
which period the undertaking was 
abandoned, because Congress refused 
to make further appropriations, vari- 
ous appropriations . were made in 
which the two per cent, fund of 
Missouri, as well as that of the 
other States, was reserved to replace 
the amounts expended. 

That part of the road passing 
through Maryland, Virginia, Pennsyl- 
vania and Ohio was completed and 
large amounts expended on it for re- 
pairs, and, if I am not misinformed, 
that portion of it lying within the 
Eastern and Western boundary of In- 
diana was entirely graded and gravel- 
ed or McAdamized the greater part of 
the way. In Illinois some culverts 
and bridges were built and the track 
graded at different points between the 
western boundary of Indiana and Van- 
dalia, the old seat of government, but 
it never passed through that place, nor 
was any part of it graveled or com- 
pleted. Consequently Illinois derived 
no benefit from it, as I admit Missouri 
did not, and on the score of justice 
they stand on equal ground. The 
General Government never kept the 
faith it pledged to Illinois when it 
reserved the two per cent, by con- 
stucting the road through that State 
as there was an obligation to do, any 
more than it complied with its promise 
to Missouri. The amounts expended 
upon the road, in the aggregate, nearly 
equal the sum of $7,000,000. The ex- 
penditure in Ohio vastly exceeds the 
expenditure in Indiana, and is about 
five times the amount of her two per 
cent. fund. The sum expended in 
Indiana vastly exceeds the amount 
spent in Illinois and is very largely 
in excess of her two per cent, fund, 
being two and a half or three times as 
much, while the amount wasted in 
Illinois does not very greatly exceed 
the sum due from the sales of the pub- 
lic lands. I can see no reason for so 
unjust a discrimination against Illinois, 
and certainly the same reasons that 
led Col. Jones to the conclusion that 
Missouri wa§ entitled to the two per 



,ent. fund, support with equal force 
he claim of the State of Illinois. 

Again, Congress gave the National 
Road or those portions of it lying 
within the States of Maryland,Yirginia 
Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana to 
those States respectively, and each of 
said States by solemn acts of their re- 
spective legislatures acceptedthe dona- 
tions, and ' established toll-gates. No 
such legislation was had in regard to 
Illinois, nor did her legislature accept 
the work within her limits , thus show- 
ing conclusively that Congress re- 
garded what had been done in that 
State as valueless, and the State her- 
self has always so considered. ^Hence 
her "equity" survives, and her claim 
is a well founded and subsisting one, 
and could not have been invalidated 
even by a donation s of ,the^ road from 
Congress. The road was surrendered 
to Ohio under an act approved March 
2d, 1831. By acts of June 24th, 1834 
and March 3rd, 1835, it was surren- 
dered to the States of Maryland, Vir- 
ginia and Pennsylvania. I have been 
unable to lay my hand on the law sur- 
rendering to Indiana that portion of 
the road lying within her limits, and 
the act of her legislature accepting it, 
but they are doubtless familiar to you. 
Col. Jones is mistaken when he 
says the United States "ceded all their 
interest in it (the road,) whether fin- 
ished or unfinished to the respective 
States within which it was laid out." 
The legislation was confined to that 
part of the work which was available. 
To have gone beyond this would have 
been useless and foolish. Col. Jones is 
also mistaken when he says that the 
appropriations for the road made after 
1825, were all expended within the 
States of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. 
Large sums were expended east of the 
Ohio river, and expenditures were 
made in that direction until the work 
was abandoned, or until within a short 
time of such abandonment. It is but 
just to add, that when considering the 
claim of Missouri, apart frcm the 
claims of Ohio, Indiana aud Illinois, 

Col. Jones's reasoning is found and 



18 



REPORT ON THE 



liis views are just and discriminating. 
It is proper for me now to show 
how these facts are related to the 
case I present. The sixth section of 
the enabling act for Illinois reserves 
two per cent, of the proceeds of the 
public lands to construct roads "lead- 
ing to said State." Of course such 
roads were to be free public highways. 
Congress had no power to take the 
Illinois two per cent, fund to build 
private turnpikes in Indiana, Ohio or 
any other State. How could it profit 
Illinois to have a road leading to her 
borders upon which tax-gatherers sit a 
few miles apart to collect tribute from 
her citizens ? Such a road is a private 
one and is the private property of the 
State or of individuals. Congress, by 
express legislation, has made the 
National Road the private property of 
the States through which it passes and 
the States possess and control the re- 
spective parts as their own. Is it 
then an answer to the claim of the 
State of Illinois that she is barred by 
the benefits conferred upon others in 
violation of a compact subsisting be- 
tween the General Government 
and herself? Is the money of the 
State to be taken for the use of 
other States, or wasted within her 
own boundaries without consulting 
her? I do not know what views 
others may hold, but it does not seem 
to me that such a policy has any foun- 
dation inlaw or equity. Illinois agreed 
with the United States, as a considera- 
tion for the five per cent, set apart in 
her enabling act that she would not tax 
the public lands for or during the 
term of five years, from and after the 
day of sale; that the military lands of 
the State, while they remained in the 
hands of the patentees or their heirs, 
should not be taxed for three years 
after the date of the patents respec- 
tively, and that lands of non-residents 
should not be taxed higher than the 
lands of residents. This agreement 
the State has faithfully kept, and now 
onlv asks the same observance of its 
faith and promise on the part of the 
National Government. If the road 



was "to be extended to the permanent 
seat of government of the State of 
Missouri," it was also to pass through 
the Capital and State of Illinois. In- 
asmuch as it did neither, and was only 
partially constructed in the manner 
hereinbefore described, and the work 
actually done being valueless, for the 
reason that it was not completed ac- 
cording to agreement by the Govern- 
ment, Illinois has certainly as strong 
an "equitable" right to the two per 
cent, fund as that of any State that 
succeeded in obtaining it. I have 
heretofore shown that all but three 
States in whichjpublic lands lie have 
received it. Her legal right to it is 
equally clear. In my communication 
to you, of the 20th ult„ I briefly indi- 
cated the points upon which I rely. 
I will now add something to the con- 
siderations then presented. In doing 
so, however, I shall not revert to what 
the Commissioner of the General 
Land Office has or has not done under 
the law, as it cannot in any way affect 
the issue now made. I will, never- 
theless, express my dissent from the 
opinion expressed by the Commission- 
er in his letter to me under date of 
Feb. 13th, 1863, wherein he says, "the 
acts to which you refer relate to 
moneys received by the Government 
for lands which had been reserved for 
certain Indian tribes." Upon every 
principle of construction, technical or 
just, they are cumulative, and have a 
wider scope and a deeper significance 
than the Commissioner is willing to 
accord to them. The Hon. Thomas 
A. Hendricks, formerly Commissioner 
of the General Land Office, and now 
U. S. Senator from the State of In- 
diana, in a letter to me, held the fol- 
lowing language, officially : 

General Land Office, [ 
January 8th, 1858. j 
Hon. L N. Morris, House of Represen- 
tatives : 

Sir, — I have the honor to acknowl- 
edge the receipt of your letter of yes- 
terday, in which you enquire whether 



TWO TER CENT FOND. 



10 



the Government will be prepared to 
pay over to the State of Illinois the 
two per cent, fund, to which she will 
be entitled in virtue of the act of 18th 
April, 1818, for her admission into the 
Union, when the same shall have been 
ascertained as required by the act of 
March 3rd, 1857, and the said act of 
admission. 

In reply I have to state that the 
amount you refer to shall be adjusted 
as soon as the great pressure of busi- 
ness will admit of it ; and I am not 
aware of any reason for withholding 
payment of the amount to which the 
State may be entitled when the same 
shall have been ascertained. 

I am sir, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 
THOS. A. HENDRICKS, 

Commissioner. 

One of your predecessors, the Hon. 
Jacob Thompson, in an opinion which 
is upon record in your Department, 
construed the law of March 3rd, 
1857, providing for the settlement of 
the five per cent, account of Missis- 
sippi and other States, as giving to that 
State and to Alabama the five per 
cent, on lands located within their 
limits with Indian Scrip. In that 
opinion he says, "This same principle 
of adjustment," (meaning.as Col. Jokes 
well remarks, what amount may be 
due Mississippi and other States for 
the two per cent, reserved) "the 
second section of the act under dis- 
cussion, extends to be applied to the set- 
tlement of the five per cent, account of 
the OTHER STATES." 

Againhesays, "thus as regards jus- 
tice and right, Alabama and Missis- 
sippi are entitled to a liberal construc- 
tion of the acts of Congress of March 
3rd, 1855 and March 3rd, 1857, and as 
a matter of equity between these two 
States as claimants against the United 
States and as between them and the 
other States of the Union, all are en- 
titled to the same equal and liberal 
construction in carrying the act of 
1857 into effect/' 



That Mr. Hendricks and Mr. 
Thompson were right in their views 
of the act of 1857, there can be no 
doubt. I have already verbally ex- 
plained to you why the claim of Illi- 
nois was not paid under Mr. Buchan- 
an's administration. 

For further expression of my own 
views concerning the legal question 
involved, I respectfully again refer 
you to my letter to you bearing date 
Feb. 20th. In view of the opinion I 
entertain of your legal ability and 
experience, I do not deem it necessary 
to discuss more fully the construction 
to be put upon the law. 

I beg leave to call your attention 
to a letter filed with you, dated Feb. 
23rd, 1863, signed by all the members 
of the late Congress from Illinois, and 
by Gen. Farnsworth, Judge Norton 
and Col. Morrison, members elect of 
the 38th Congress, expressing the 
opinion that the State is legally and 
equitably entitled to the two per cent, 
under existing laws, and urging the 
payment of the amount. 

The present Commissioner of the 
Geueral Land Office while differing 
from me in the construction of the acts 
of 1855 and '57, says, in a letter dated 
General Land Office, Feb. 14th, 1863, 
and addressed to the Hon. John F. 
Potter, Chairman of the Plouse Com- 
mittee on Public Lands, "there is no 
reason known why the State of Illinois 
should not stand upon the same foot- 
ing as the State of Missouri, in regard 
to which latter, Congress has given a 
precedent by the act of Feb. 28th, 
1859." Adopting the view expressed 
by the Commissioner, the Committee 
on Public Lands in the House unani- 
mously instructed their chairman to re- 
port a joint resolution and recommend 
its passage, furnished by the Commis- 
sioner of the General Land Office 
directing, as a matter of justice and 
right, the payment to Illinois of the 
two per cent. The Chairman of the 
Committee was firm in the belief that 
I existing laws required the payment of 
the money, and the resolution could 



se 



ftlPORT Off THB 



only be valuable, inasmuch as it might 
overcome the scruples of the Commis- 
sioner and obtain a statement of the 
account. The Committee, however, 
from the time the resolution was 
agreed on had no opportunity to re- 
port. Indeed I, myself, requested Mr. 
Potter to withhold it,as upon consulta- 
tion with Mr. Washburn and others 
it was thought unneccessary and un- 
wise to duplicate existing legislation. 
It may not be out of place to remark 
that the mere fact that the Represen- 
tatives of one State obtained the pass- 
age of a joint resolution by Congress 
to compel a reluctant officer to do his 
duty cannot invalidate the rights of 
other States under existing laws. 

In conclusion I will say that I think 
I have shown clearly, 

1st. That the State of Illinois is 
equitably entitled to the payment of 
her claim. 

2. That she is legally entitled to the 
payment of it. 

3. That the President of the United 
States, the late Secertary of the Inte- 
rior, Mr. Thompson, the late Commis- 
sioner of the General Land Office, Mr. 
Hendricks, the delegation from Illinois 
in Congress, and the House Committe 
on Public Lands, and all other persons 
to whom the question has been official- 
ly or unofficially presented, excepting 
only the present Commissioner of the 
General Land Office, consider the 
existing legislation sufficient to secure 
the rights of the State and the pay- 
ment of the claim. 

4. That the present Commissioner 
of the General Land Office unequivo- 
cally admits the equitable character 
of the State's claim. 

Without adding anything to these 
considerations I leave the interest of 
Illinois to you in confident expectation 
of a just and equitable decision. 

All of which is respectfully submit- 
ted. 

I. N. MORRIS. 

My letter of March 10th, seemed to 
be demanded by the supposition that 



I should not be able to wait in Wash- 
ington until the Interior Secretary's 
return from Indiana, and from the 
additional consideration that the paoer 
prepared by Col. Jones was given an 
undue importance against the rights 
of the State, and made it necessary 
that I should discuss more in detail 
than I had done, or proposed 1o do, 
the question of the National Road. 

Wearied with unnecessary delay at 
the Interior Department I determined 
to take an appeal to the President. 
After calling several times without 
seeing him, and being afterwards too 
much indisposed to leave my room, I 
prepared and placed in the hands of 
Hon. P. B. Fouke the following paper, 
which he read to the President on the 
23rd of March, instead of the 20th, as 
that was the first interview he had 
with him after a persevering effort of 
ten days to obtain one : 

Mr. President, — I sincerely regret 
the necessity of again troubling you 
with the business pertaining to Illi- 
nois, intrusted to me by Gov, Yates. 
Nothing but an imperative sense of 
public duty could induce me to do it. 
At our interviews I cheerfully admit 
you have treated me and the subject 
with great frankness and justice ; for 
you not only heard my presentation of 
the case with patience, but at once 
decided that the State was entitled 
to the benefit which I insisted the laws 
confer upon her. If you had not 
so determined, the claim would not 
have been pressed. You have, also, 
with the most commendable candor 
and fairness given to others the same 
construction to the laws that you did 
to me. I am, therefore, surprised that 
after weeks of patient waiting, the In- 
terior Department has not decided the 
appeal, involving the claim of the 
State, now pending before it. To ob- 
tain a decision I have resorted to 



TW0 PER CBN* FtTND. 



21 



•rery respectful and honorable means, 
without success. First one pretext 
and then another has been interposed 
for delay, which it is not requisite I 
should detail to } r ou. I am persuaded 
the delay has not arisen from want of 
time, for the Interior Secretary has 
found leisure to quit the post of his 
official labors here and sro to Indiana 
to attend to private professional busi- 
ness there, leaving the case of Illinois, 
which it would have taken but a mo- 
ment to determine, undisposed of. 
Hence there must be some other motive 
or reason for his course not now ne- 
cessary to enquire into. 

On Friday last, the 13th inst., Gov. 
Yates, then being in Washington, tel- 
egraphed to the Secretary that as he 
was absent he would be obliged if he 
would allow his Assistant Secretary, 
Judge Otto, to decide the case. The 
Secretary replied that Judge Otto 
might do so if his other duties would 
permit, but the Judge declined to act. 

Despairing of obtaining a decision 
from the Interior Department, and no 
sufficient reason being assigned by the 
Secretary for the procrastination, I ap- 
peal to you, sir, to see that justice is 
done to Illinois. I believe this is the 
only hope she has of having it award- 
ed to her. I make the appeal with 
the full confidence and belief that you 
will direct that the laws shall be exe- 
cuted. Your impartial justice and 
high sense of public duty afford a 
sufficient guarranty of your action in 
the premises. 

My health is bad, and if I leave 
here without the account being made 
up and reviewed by the First Comp- 
troller of the Treasury, which I Tv*ill 
have to do unless the matter is dis- 
posed of soon, the probability is 
the business will remain just where I 
left it. As it now stands I shall only 
be able to report to the Governor, and 
through him to the Legislature and 
people of Illinois, that your Secretary 
has crushed under his feet, and refuses 
to give practical effect to, laws 
which you have decided require the 



payment of the State's demand. I 
know of nothing more I can do. If I 
have been importunate it was because 
I thought the interests of my State 
required it, and 1 believed myself un- 
necessarily delayed. 

On four occasions I have sought 
opportunities to personally present 
these views, but your other engage- 
ments prevented . I have,therefore, re- 
duced them to writing and placed them 
in the hands of Hon. P. B. Fouke, to 
read to you, as he has an engagement 
to meet you to-morrow morning. Your 
answer to him will determine my 
future action. I do not permit my- 
self, however, to doubt but it will be 
favorable, and that I shall have the 
agreeable duty to perform of saying 
to the people of Illinois they are in- 
debted to your promptness and justice 
for the recognition and enforcement of 
their long delayed rights. 

I. N. MORRIS. 

Washington, March 19th, 1863. 

The President desired to know of 
Col. Fouke whether he appeared on 
behalf of the State. The Colonel re- 
plied that he did, at my instance, 
which makes it proper to state what 
occurred at the interview between 
them pertaining to the public business 
with which I was entrusted. 

As he had frequently done before, 
the President said that the claim of 
the State was all right — that its pay- 
ment was a mere question of time — 
that the pressure upon the Treasury 
at the present was so great that it 
could not be paid now very well, &c. 
He also said to Col. Fouke, that he 
had talked with Mr. Usher, his Sec- 
retary of the Interior, on the subject, 
and that his Secretary entertained pre- 
cisely the ' same view of the laws upon 
which the claim of the State is based, as 
he himself did — that he, the Secretary, 
had so said to him. It already distinct- 



22 



KErORT ON THE 



ly appears in this report what is the 
President's view of the laws. 

Judge Otto, the able Assistant 
Secretary, I presume, agrees with the 
President and Secretary in their con- 
struction of the law, for the Secretary 
said to me that the Judge "believed 
the case a very strong one in favor of 
the State," It appears, therefore, that 
the Administration of Mr. Lincoln is 
fully committed in favor of the State's 
claim, and that what I have accom- 
plished so far is : 

1st. A respectful consideration of 
the State's demand. 

2d. A recognition of its legality and 
equity. 

But one other question remains un- 
disposed of. The administration hav- 
ing admitted the legality and equity of 
the claim, will they pay it ? This 
they cannot avoid doing except 
in one of two ways : 

1st. By arbitrarily and wilfully 
disregarding the provisions of a plain 
law which they have sworn to execute; 
or, 

2d. By pleading bankruptcy for the 
Government in bar. 

Will they do either ? I have not 
yet seen any thing to convince me they 
design to resort to such disreputable 
means. The payment of the claim is 
only postponed for a short, time, as I 
understand the matter — the law not 
totally suspended. To attempt the lat- 
ter would be a flagrant act of injustice 
and wrong, which any honorable gov- 
ernment would scorn, and I have no 
belief that the Administration intends 
that injury shall be done to the State. 
Mr. Lincoln did not, in my inter- 
views with him, manifest any sucli dis- 
position, nor have I any fear that he 



will. His Interior Secretary, 1 have 
thought and still think, resort- 
ed to unnecessary delay, but I do 
not believe he designs, in the end, 
to wilfully do the State a wrong, 
though when I addressed my communi- 
cation to the President it seemed as 
though he did. The amount of the 
claim, in view of which he has two or 
three times threatened to decide 
against the State, if forced to decide 
at the present, upon the exploded 
hypothesis of expenditures on the 
National Road, is, I am now convinced, 
all that prevents his prompt action. 
Such a consideration, however, can- 
not long prevail against a well estab- 
lished and subsisting demand, nor do 
I think the Secretary seriously con- 
templates it should. 

The following letter and my note 
relating thereto, will show the States 
which have received the five per cent; 
and why should Illinois be turned 
away witli her measure empty when 
others have been filled? Why should 
she be unjustly discriminated against? 
Instead of the President subjecting 
himself to censure by having the de- 
mand paid, he should delight, and I 
think will delight, in the opportunity 
he has of rendering an act of justice 
to his State, which has so often and 
faithfully honored him. At all events, 
being a citizen of Illinois should 
not deter him from doimr his dutv by 
her, nor do I believe it will. 

General Land Office, ) 
February 17th, 1868. J 

Hon. I. N, Morris : 

Sir, — In reply to your letter of the 
14th inst.. I have the honor to inform 
you that the following named States, 
have received from the General Gov- 
ernment five per cent of the >net 



TWO PER CENT FUND. 



23 



proceeds of the sales of public Lands, 
viz : Louisiana, Arkansas, Michigan, 
Wisconsin, Kansas, Iowa and Minne- 
sota.* Very respectfully, 

Your ob't servant, 
J. M. EDMUNDS, 
Commissioner. 



I have mentioned that the magni 
tude of the claim was the only cause 
delaying its payment. I do not 
know that I can state to your Excel- 
lency the precise amount of it, but I 
can very nearly give it. The law of 
1857 fixes the value of all public lands 
at $1,25 per acre, as a basis for the 
computation of the five per cent. I 
obtained, when in Washington, a 
tabular statement, showing the various 
payments to the State of the three per 
cent, fund, the aggregate of which is 
$711,179,54. If the aggregate 
amount of the sales of the public 
lands should be equal to $1,25 per 
acre, which is probably just about the 
sum realized for them, then the two 
per cent, fund is precisely equal to two 
thirds of $711,179,54, and is conse- 
quently $474,119,69. If the aggre- 
gate amount received for the lands 
should be more than equivalent to 
$1,25 per acre, in that event the two 
per cent, would be something less 
than I have stated it. The difference, 
however, cannot be large, if anything, 
and the claim of the State may be put 
down safely, in round numbers, at 
four hundred and seventy four thous- 
and dollars, upon which interest ought 
to be paid from the time I made the 
demand for the money in behalf of the 
State, December 12th, 1857. 

When I reached Washington, on the 

♦Note.— To the above list must be added Alabama, 
Mississippi, Missouri, California and Oregon, which 
States have received their full five per cent, and 
were omitted by the Commissioner in his statement. 

I. N. MORRIS. 



7 th of February last, I found the 
claim resting just where I had left it 
when my Congressional term expired 
in 1861, no one having done anything 
about it, and I resumed the manage- 
ment of it at that point. I shall con- 
tinue its prosecution until the money 
is paid, using therein my best en- 
deavors and discretion. Sickness and 



what appeared a sincere and earnest 
desire on the part of the Administra- 
tion for a short delay were my only 
reasons for returning home when I 
did. If the account is not made up 
within a reasonable time, which I hope 
will be the case, I shall once more 
visit Washington, and should I then 
again fail in obtaining the voluntary 
payment of the demand from the Ex- 
ecutive Department of the Govern- 
ment, which is charged with the duty 
of seeing that the laws are "faithfully 
executed 7 '— -a thing I do not permit 
myself to anticipate — I shall adopt 
another course for the recovery of the 
money. But Lought not to contemplate 
any adverse* result. The possibility 
that the Administration will compel 
the State to resort to compulsory 
means to obtain her admitted rights, 
is too remote to be seriously consid- 
ered. For it cannot be that the 
President, who is so clear in his view 
of the law, will fail to see it executed. 
To refuse a compliance with its pro- 
visions would be a gross wrong, which 
it would be unjust to anticipate. 

My action in the premises I trust 
meets your Excellency's approbation, 
and I hope will redound to the honor 
of your administration and the in- 
terest of the State. 

I acknowledge with satisfaction 
your energetic determination in the 
prosecution of the claim, and thank 
you for your confidence and valuable 
aid. 

All of which is respectfully sub- 
mitted. 

I. N. MORRIS, 

Qnincy, 111., April, 1863. 



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021 048 337 8 



APPENDIX. 



The following correspondence and the favorable 
action of the Committee on Public Lands trans- 
pired through my agency, but, as I hare stated 
elsewhere, it was not thought best, upon more 
mature reflection, to ask any further legislation 
from Congress, as that already existing was deem- 
ed amply sufficient to secure the payment of the 
State's demand. 

In this connection I cannot refrain from, saying 
that our State owes to Mr. Potter, of Wisconsin, a 
debt of gratitude for his prompt, just and liberal 
action in her behalf, as Chairman of the Committee 
on Public Lands in the House. 

I. 3| MORRIS. 

House of Representatives, 
Washington City, Feb. 13th, 1863. 

Hon. J. M. Edmunds, Commissioner of General 

Public Land Office : 

Sir, — Will you favor me with a resolution which, 
in its terms, will authorize the payment of the two 
per cent, fund arising from the sales of public 
lands in Illinois, reserved in the act admitting 
her into the Union, for road purposes, and which 
in similar instances has been relinquished to, or 
given to other new States. 

I hope you will also favor me with your views 
npon the propriety and justice of allowihg said 
two per cent, fund to said State. 
Tours very respectfully, 

JOHN F. POTTER, 
Chairman Committee on Public Lands. 

General Land Office, | 
February 14, 1863. J 

Sir, — Pursuant to your request of yesterday, I 
have the honor to enclose herewith a draft of a 
joint resolution in reference to the relinquishment 
of the two per cent, fund to the State of Illinois. 

This Resolve proposes to relinquish upon the 
application of the Governor, instead of pursuant to 
an act of the Legislature — with that modification to 
avoid delay. There is no reason known why the 
Stato of Illinois should not stand upon the same 
footing in the matter as the State of Missouri, in 
r«g»xd to whi«h latUr Congrats has giro* pres- 



cient by the act of February 28th, 1859.— Stat's, 
Vol. 11, Page 388, Chap. 65. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 
J. M. EDMUNDS, 

Commissioner. 
Hon. John F. Potter, 

Chairman Com. on Publie Lands, House of Reps. 

Joint Resolution in relation to the two per cent, 
fund due the State of Illinois, unanimously agreed 
upon by the House Committee on Public Lands, 
and its passage recommended : 

Resolved by the Senate and House of Represen- 
tatives of the United States of America in Congrest 
assembled, That the principles of the act of Con- 
gress approved February 28th, 1859, "giving the 
assent of Congress to a law of the Missouri Legis- 
lature, for the application of the reserved two 'per 
cent land fund of said State," shall be applied to 
the State of Illinois, with this modification, that 
the relinquishment of the United States to the two 
per cent, fund contemplated in the third clause of 
the sixth section of the Illinois Enabling Act, ap- 
proved April 18th, 1818, shall take effect°from and 
after the date of the acceptance of said relin- 
quishment by the Governor of said State of Illi- 
nois, and the accounting officer of the Government 
shall thereupon adjust the claim of said State of 
Illinois in like manner as directed by said act of 
February 28th, 1859, in regard to the State of 
Missouri. 

The following is a copy of the bill referred to in 
the foregoing report, and which I introduced into 
the House of Representatives. 

I. N. MORRIS. 
A Bill authorizing the payment of the ttco per centum 

land fund to which the Sitt'e of Illinois is entitled, 

for road j)urposea. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives of the United States of 
America in Congress assembled, That the two p«r 
centum of the net proceeds of the sales of the pub- 
lic lands in the State of Illinois, reserved by exist- 
ing laws to bo expended in said State, under the 
directions of Congress, for road purposes, bo and 
the same is hereby relinquished to said State, and 
that the proper accounting officers of the United 
States are hereby authorized and required to audit 
and pay the accounts in full for the same, as in 
the case of the three per centum land fund of said 
State, to tho Gerornc* thoroef; »r hi* ftntkorkoA 



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